Boro Mania

There is a tinge of disappointment around Boro fans at losing our leading scorer and most exciting player but Adam Johnson's move to Manchester City was also met with an air of inevitability. It's disappointing to lose him but lets face it, he was going anyway, if not now then at the end of the season and the eventual deal with City was probably best for both parties.

It is easy to get nostalgic and put on those rose tinted glasses when looking back on a player who, at times, was far too good for this league but Adam Johnson was not the complete article and, at this point in his career, is a long way off the level Stewart Downing was at. Both are very different players, who get unfairly compared due to the position they play, Johnson has very high technical ability and on his day can be a far more exciting player to watch but he also lacks the decision making and fundamental football intelligence that made Downing such an important player.

I will be following his career at Manchester City with intrigue and it will be very interesting to see just how well his game improves from playing and training with world class footballers. I, for one, bear absolutely no ill-feeling towards the lad and I genuinely hope he goes on to be an England International, another feather in the cap of our excellent academy set up. I will also be intrigued to see how Mancini decides to use Johnson and what the expectations are, I think it is fair to say that, when it comes to the final ball, Johnson is the kind of winger who prefers to find a shot on goal than a telling cross and just how well that will go down with players like Adebayor, Tevez and Bellamy remains to be seen.

Browsing a few City forums yesterday I was struck by a comment along the lines of:

I can't wait to see Adebayor getting on the end of Johnson's crosses.

And I thought to myself you would have been better off signing Downing if that's the case!

What this does leave Boro now is a lack of players in a position that we were once blessed with an abundance of talent. Where, at one point, we had Downing, Johnson and, some felt, young Porritt on the left wing we now have no recognised left winger. Downing and Johnson obviously sold on for large sums and Porritt failing to make the grade.

What we may see is a change in formation from Gordon Strachan and the use of wingbacks, a feeling strengthened by the addition of Kyle Naughton.